Kentucky Dog Training LLC

Bucky is demonstrating some very important service dog skills here. -easy to handle “hands free” to make shopping easy -not showing any interest in things on the ground -no touching or sniffing any merchandise in the store -remaining attentive regardless of what is going on in the environment

Copper has come a long way in viewing walks as a team activity instead of tug of war! We love seeing him really adjust his pace to his mom’s pace, check in with her for guidance and feedback, and heel with her while having a great attitude about his job.

Getting some field trips in before the weather gets really awful the next few days. Rudy is an excitable lab/Weimaraner mix who is doing excellent channeling his energy and drive into new jobs like heeling. The dog we passed was very forward and huffing and made Rudy feel a bit insecure, which you can see in him really hugging my leg while passing and the slight forging when the dog is behind us. I give him a verbal reminder that he doesn’t need to forge, and he adjusts himself. If the dog did get away from the owner or drag over to us, I would get between that dog and Rudy and be his advocate. Lots of leash reactivity issues are caused by dogs thinking they have to protect themself, rather than thinking you are in their corner and are taking care of things.

Livie is a 2.5 year old Havanese who was rescued from a bad situation. Like many puppy mill rescues, Livie struggled to bond with her owner, didn’t adjust easily to new situations, was scared of slick floors, and struggles to recover when she gets nervous. She went home yesterday after two weeks wirh Kara, where she grew leaps and bounds in her confidence and life skills. She is adjusting well back home, and we will continue to work with her and her mom to really strengthen their bond and continue building Livie’s confidence.

Bory and Melee are back for boarding over Christmas, and I love being able to let these energetic girls fully enjoy their stay with lots of running around time in the big field. Off leash reliability and the freedom it brings is one of the greatest gifts you can give your dog.

Miss Lulu is a 4 month old Australian Labradoodle, and she is doing an absolutely fabulous job with her training program. This afternoon her session was focused on heeling, auto sits, sit stays, and work around dog distractions, and tonight she gets to go on a field trip to Home Depot. Lulu’s parents did a great thing signing her up for training at an early age so that they will have a well mannered dog for many years to come!

Here Rocky demonstrates correct behavior for a reliable recall. 1) Immediate response to command. 2) Coming directly to me and sitting within arms reach. 3) Waiting to be released, even if distractions are tempting him to leave early. In order for a recall to truly be safe for off leash, I have to know that my dog is fully committed to me and understands how to pause fun and play when asked. And while we do use food rewards, toys, and praise yo reinforce this behavior, a lot of the time the best reward is the dog being released back to play with his friends!

It’s totally okay to have two different sets of expectations for two different dogs! Our trainee Pippa is heeling with her mom here while her brother is busy doing his own thing. Part of proofing and making sure behaviors are very clear to our dog is making sure that they understand that just because another dog is doing something, doesn’t mean they should do that too. About 75% of our clients have another dog at home, and we feel very strongly that having another dog at home who has not gone through training should not be a barrier to success.

One thing that’s definitely not fun is having an armful of merchandise and having your dog trying to drag you over to people or other dogs. Rocky is doing phenomenal on his obedience and life skills, and was a model citizen at PetSmart today❤️

Some happy heeling for Mr. Bruce during his go home lesson 🥰❤️

5 month old Maverick the Goldendoodle working on some heeling and sit stays while we wait for his parents to arrive for his go home lesson. Maverick did our 2 week Puppy Primer program!